The storage closet, as it was known is in actuality a large room that used to be a gallery before the building became an asylum. The staff, seeing no use for it, decided to instead use it for storing anything and everything. This led to it being filled with metal shelves that hold various boxes, which in turn are filled with various supplies such as stacks of paper, clipboards, pens, and so forth. Never very well organised or maintained to begin with, the storage closet was forgotten about when the asylum was abandoned and is now called home by many spiders and rats.

'You know'? Maybe. Maybe Ben knew shit, maybe he didnt. He didnt need to know. The snail slime that was his instinct made it simple enough. He was not a thief. Not an opportunist, not a vagabond. He wouldnt entertain the option, wouldnt let it cross his mind any further. Maybe Matt would, maybe he wouldn't. Maybe it was just words, those slippery tricky bastards. "Might still be supplies around to scavenge. No way just two buses of kids scrounged through every nook and cranny already." He hadn't seen any other kids, even. Just a handful of assholes at best, before Nate and Matt.

And now he could add one more kid to that count. Shit, he hadn't been keeping an eye out on Nate. Pipe dreams of weapons and adrenaline and justice and shit, it had tied his neurons into a couple of neat knots and a couple hundred Gordians for good measure. Fuck. A bag couldn't move, it couldn't give away a position. A person could. And Ben, of course, had been keeping his eyes on the damn inanimate object. Add that shit to the list of his good ideas so far. Ben immediately wanted to make up for his mistake. Get up, get out there, get Nate before he was possibly hurt. But Matt got his eye, just the moment before Ben's heel was about to take the brunt of his weight 'til it half shattered. Before he stood and interjected. Finger to the lips. The ol' shush. If it was the right call he didn't know. He didn't need to, because he paused just long enough and the answer became clear.

Ben had always thought that dude's voice was particularly ridiculous. Somehow managed to over-emphasize every single syllable at once.

"Yo, Henry." Spider, huh? So Ben's eyes were still that useful, at least. "Glad to see you're still okay dude." Ben stood up, put himself right into the light where he could be seen. Hiding from Henry Spencer was a no go. Jerry Fury, maybe; even Maxim whatever-the-fuck in context. But not Henry fucking Spencer. Ben had some dignity left, in whatever was left of his body.

Nate stared at Henry as he rambled on about nothing, trying to think of the appropriate response to being reassured that Henry wasnt about to try and jump him. Thanks, I guess? He finally said, as he tried to to crack a smile, with mixed results.

Nate wasnt overly familiar with Henry, their interests putting them pretty far apart from each other. They were in the same grade, he knew that much, and Henry had never given him any particular reason to be wary. He didnt seem to be the most outgoing person, but that was fine as far as Nate was concerned, as long as he wasnt aggressive about it or anything.

Im not alone, though. He started, before Ben cut him off from behind by appearing in the doorway. Nate turned back to his companion, stepping out from between him and Henry so that he could talk to them both at once. Matt Moradis with us too. He continued, turning into the room to point out his other buddy in a perfectly casual manner.

Do you want to come in? There wasnt any reason Henry had to stand around in the doorway, after all. Ben seemed to know him and he seemed friendly enough, so there was no reason Nate couldnt relax his guard. Besides, it was probably safer in the room with them than outside where people were starting to lose it.

He didn't want these people to die. As he stood there, smiling pleasantly and looking at the two guys inside the box-filled room, he recognized that their survival was directly opposed to his own. One of them would outlive all the others. Ben, Nate, Matt, Henry; one, if any, of these four would survive.

Henry didn't know if he could will himself to be that one.

Still smiling, Henry stepped past Nate into the room, where his eyes locked onto the pile of bags off to the side. Henry casually made his way towards the pile, looking over at Nate. "So how you guys been doing? I've not seen too much bad stuff, luckily. Still, better safe than sorry, right?"

Henry stopped in front of the bags. He smiled sheepishly. "I uh, did lose my stuff though. Haven't eaten all day which is, you know, yeah kinda sucky. Mind if I borrow some protein bars or something?"

He chuckled, awkwardly. "Not borrow, really, but uh, yeah, eat. And then, later, you know. I assume you don't want them back! But no seriously," His cheer faded. "That sound okay? I'm a little desperate." He made a gesture with his fingers indicating smallness.

Matt had honestly started to wonder about the odds that they'd run across another person that someone in their little group knew. There were only, what, one hundred something people on the island right now - probably not even that - so it wasn't too unbelievable. Still, he had to wonder if this person was worth trusting. Not everyone that Nate and Ben knew were their friends, right? They had to know a couple of assholes. A couple of people who wouldn't think twice about killing someone like him. Someone who couldn't really fight back.

Eventually, Henry came inside - dispelling any of Matt's fears that he was the slightest bit dangerous, at least in the 'can beat you to death' sense - and immediately started asking for food. Not his food, Matt thought. He wasn't going to be getting any of that. He could go find his own or mooch off of someone else. Not answering Henry's question, Matt tried to go over to his bag and pick it up in a way that seemed entirely unrelated to the question Henry had just asked. Of course, he had failed - it was obvious that he didn't want him to have any of his food.

Might as well answer him. "Uh.. sorry, I kinda want to keep all my food for myself. Gotta look out for number one, right?" He heard a little tiny voice in his head calling him an asshole, but he didn't particularly care. With the kind of situation they were all in, he really did have to look out for himself. Still - he didn't want to look too heartless. "But, uh, if we run into any food.. it's yours. I guess." Something about this guy seemed off. He didn't seem dangerous, but there was something a bit strange about him.

Some kinda fleeting memory of bygone first days of class. 'I'm Matt Moradi, and.. I guess if I had to say it, I like not dying.' Fairly accurate high schooler sentiment, that. Ben was sure he'd heard that before, down in the trenches between the desks. Couldn't recall so well, but he was sure.

Hm.

Almost seemed normal. Only off kilter bit was the part where they'd almost been too afraid to let an awkward aspie kid through the door. Ben watched Henry as he walked inside. Straight for the bags. Hadn't seemed suspicious until Henry had opened his mouth. Ben knew a fake laugh when he heard it.

Matt said no, and Ben's thoughts went two ways on that. Selfish. But understandable. They'd even talked over the ration count. Only so much vittles to go around, and everyone in the room knew it. Least of all Henry, way he was all bent out of shape. Ben could see the desperation. At least he thought he could. It hadn't been long ago, probably, that Ben had read somewhere that dehydration was one of the worst ways to go. Hardly the sort of info Ben had needed a book to guess at. Matt was probably afraid of that nightmarish vividness where the stomach was digesting itself raw and bloody out of hunger. Ben understood the sentiment. He didn't believe it, but he got it.

"Guess you could take a few of mine, like we could split them part-ways or something. Should tide you over until we can scavenge some extra grub." Second later and Ben was also by the bags. A bit off to the side, where the camera was busy trying to grab his ass in the shot from behind a rack of mildew and cobwebs stacked this way up. He raised an arm, felt the creak of morning rust flaking off like skin dust. Waved over to Nate. Come on in. Ambiance is terrible, but stay for the company. "What happened to your shit anyways, dude? Anything we got to watch out for? Anyone?" Maybe the names he'd heard before. Maybe new ones.

Nate looked between Matt and Ben as Henry asked about the food, feeling a pang of sympathy for his situation. It couldnt have been easy being stuck in a situation like this and also starving all the while. He wouldve been the first to offer him some protein bars if Ben hadnt cut him off.

Its ok, he butted in, not wanting to miss the chance to help and not wanting his own generosity to go unnoticed. he can have some of my stuff. I dont eat that much anyway. That was something of a lie, all that exercise did leave him quite hungry, but it was a reflexive fib to make the offer more palatable.

He smiled at Ben and Henry, though not at Matt, whos reluctance to help out hadnt gone unnoticed. It made Nate feel just a little bit disappointed that his friend wouldnt be more selfless, but he chose not to dwell on it for too long. It wasnt like Henry was out to do any harm, though, so it wasnt really cool of Matt to hold out on him.

Ben had raised a good question though. Maybe Henry was a klutz who had just lost his stuff, but Nate supposed that was probably unlikely. If his classmates had started attacking, no, killing each other, then taking their food wasnt exactly a huge leap. Henry was alive and looked well enough, but what if he had avoided danger by the skin of his teeth? Not nice to think about.

Yeah, are you ok? Did someone try to- he caught himself. He didnt really want to ask it out loud and openly discuss the reality that they were trapped in; it was hard enough accepting that his classmates were out for each other in the first place. Youre not hurt or anything, right?

Truth be told, he'd mostly expected the entire group to decline the suggestion to share. Looking out for number one, as Matt had said. But Ben and Nate had both offered to share, and Henry now felt conflicted. He'd intended to steal from them, after all! How could he now accept their food anyway, now that it was offered willingly?

He smiled, though. He was still starving. "Thanks guys, I really appreciate it. Mind if I sit?" Not waiting for an answer, Henry plopped down onto the ground, relieving his sore legs of their post.

"As for my stuff, well uh..." Henry paused. He could tell the truth, but the truth was embarrassing. Modified truth seemed more fair to him. "I lost it yesterday, it uh, got left behind when some guys chased me. I'm not hurt or anything, luckily, but uh, yeah."

Sure, Henry had gone straight for the bags - sure, Ben was sharing his food with Henry. And sure, Henry had likely narrowly avoided getting beaten to death by leaving behind his bag. He'd do the same in that kind of situation, too.. but despite all that, Matt didn't feel particularly bad about not sharing. Wanting to keep all his food for himself - at least until Henry or someone else was really starving - didn't seem too bad a thing to do. He had to look out for himself before anyone else. If he didn't, then sooner or later, someone was going to take advantage of him.

Altruism, he thought, is fucking suicide in this situation. Sooner or later, someone is going to take advantage of him. Him or someone else he knew.

Matt cracked a smile that was half real, half fake. Sure, Henry was more than a bit strange and was eyeing their bags suspiciously again, but he bet his money that anyone would think twice about picking a fight with a group of four people. Well, three and a half, if you really think about it. Right now, though, they weren't being attacked or anything like that - they just had to pass the time, really. Figure out what to do next. Maybe Henry was a savant, or something - that'd be useful, thought Matt.

"Well, uh.. who was chasing you, man? We gotta look out for them. They sound like trouble."

The affirmative gesture followed on the bony pivot of Ben's wrist. Words not needed there. Shit, people had to ask about even sitting now? Used to be anywhere that wasn't an uninvited lap was free game for the old posterior. Hell, whatever. Ben wasn't gonna ask for permission to pull up a chair. One of the many nonexistent ones in the room. He sat himself next to his bag, the one slightly more wrinkled and stained than the other two.

He got quiet. Listening was easy. Room was just skull hollow enough for voices to carry.

He got mad. Thinking was hard. Wringing the lard out of the dishtowel brain.

But thoughts still came. The kinda thoughts where one imagined some innocent harmless dude with a dumbass dye-job running from people. The sort of people where one called them with a name once but then somewhere along the line a name was meaningless syllables for something no longer human.

"Yeah, we gotta watch out for them for sure. Maybe find them." There was some minuscule part wonder, reflection on how his voice couldn't have sounded this gruff, hastily dredged up from the phlegm of his chest if he'd just woken up and started shuffling for the nearest bathroom. Rest of the neurons were busy boiling away. The hell sort of degenerate lowlives put fucking Henry Spencer on a hitlist?

"We gotta move ASAP... Here. You can eat on the go."

Ben crammed a hand into his bag, felt around until an unmolested protein bar was in his hand. He snapped it in half so fast the wrapper was still there. Fumbling. He looked like an idiot. His fingers skittered like spider legs, scrambled. He eventually felt the crumbs of dusty amino acids into the grease of his palms, and he threw half Henry's way. Assuming the kid could catch it without warning. Fuck. Ben on point with the tactical foresight.

Nate listened patiently with his sympathetic ear, but gave Ben a look of concern when he suggested looking for the people whod robbed Henry.

On one hand, he supposed, it would be great if Henry could get his stuff back, but they were in the midst of such a dangerous situation. What was the point of going out looking for trouble? It wouldve been much better to stay out of harms way as long as possible, after all, and maybe something would eventually happen to save them.

Wishful thinking, he knew, but giving into despair wouldnt have helped at all either.

He did agree with Ben that it was time to go, however. Hed had his fill of this gloomy cupboard, and his legs were itching for a stretch. There was no knowing what they might find out there where everyone was losing it, and Nate was still a bit terrified of the whole idea, but he was getting restless all the same.

Grabbing up his bag and staff, he waited on everyone else before they headed off.